GOP’s solution is not the one for us

Published 1:00 pm Saturday, October 6, 2012

I’ve reread Kent Lord’s letter of Sept. 14 (“On a rocket ride to economic shambles,” page A5).

As he has correctly suggested, this election is about philosophical differences between the three major parties — Left, Right, and Far Right.

Moreover, his plea to a faithful class of minority voters — affluent white males — should not go unheeded. Surely they too have suffered from the damage forced upon all of us by the Bush Depression of 2008 and eight years of “trickle down” economics. However, I am encouraged that, with the stock market approaching new highs and this minority’s shockingly low tax rates, these “1 percenters” will still avoid bankruptcy and forced sales of their Mercedes Benzes.

Mr. Lord’s “shambles” argument is meritless.

Truly this is a strange time to me as an American: bankruptcy trustees are charged with paying medical bills, shareholders quibble over $20 million bonuses for CEOs, and the Honda-Toyota empire must work even harder to compete with the new Detroit.

The Conservatives’ “trickle” became a “dribble,” and then a “drip.” Someone recently said, “It’s the arithmetic, stupid.” George W., selling a tax cut to his loyalists, blew through a $10 trillion surplus in only eight years, while his followers today still continue to reject a basic economic principle — cutting tax revenues to tame a budgetary deficit may be good for Mr. Lord’s minority, but devastating for the rest of us fearful of national bankruptcy.

History reflects that our Republican friends vigorously opposed Medicare, resisted Social Security, argued those without J-O-B-S were lazy and worthless, defended Wall Street, and aggressively pursued greater government regulation of women’s’ medical care.

As a simple voter, I honestly do not know who has the best solution. However, I do know who does not.

Steve Swann
Poulsbo